In Time
by AquaTurquoise
Summary: One evening after work when the royal family has gone to bed, Baileywick discovers Violet's secret late-night ritual she's recently begun.


In Time

Summary: One evening after work when the royal family has gone to bed, Baileywick discovers Violet's secret late-night ritual she's recently begun.

Disclaimer: I do not own the show.

A/N: Some people have been asking for another Baileywick story, in particular one that deals with him interacting with Violet. I'll admit—I enjoy watching them together. Mutual respect and kindness. What more could you ask for? ;) Enjoy! (PS-Happy Five Years to _Sofia the First_!)

Warning: It may be somewhat short, but it's super fluffy… I swear I saw a unicorn bouncing by while I was writing this. :p Have fun!

*Story*

"All right, everyone," Baileywick announced to his team as he glanced at his pocket watch. "Now that King Roland and his family have gone to bed, we can get this dining room cleaned up and tidy a few other places we had to skip earlier today. Make sure to wash the tablecloth in that new solution Cedric created. It actually smells nice and makes the fabric much softer." Yeah, even _he_ couldn't believe he'd just given the sorcerer credit for something like that, but he was always one to call it like he saw it, and Cedric's new solution was actually beneficial in its own way.

The steward smiled as the workers dispersed and carried on with their work. However, he noticed rather quickly one of his most prominent people was missing. He reached out to Suzette, who blinked. "Where's Violet?" In fact, if he was totally honest with himself, he seemed to be seeing less and less of the maid the last few days, and he was starting to worry.

The woman smiled thoughtfully as she shrugged. "I'd check the ballroom if I were you, sir," she hinted with a little giggle as she hurried off to do her chores.

"Ballroom? It wasn't even in use today." Curious, he turned and left the room, bypassing the workers who were busy with their tasks. He gently pushed the ballroom door open and paused, eyes slightly widening at the sight before him.

Violet was indeed in there, her abandoned apron and hair cap on the floor. Her hair was loose for a change, curling below her shoulders, and she held in her hands a mop. And what was she doing with that mop? Why, she was dancing with it, of course.

Baileywick watched her twirl around the dancefloor with her partner of choice (seriously, a mop?) before slowly smiling and shaking his head. Violet was by far one of his favorite fellow employees, because she had a mind of her own and seemed to make things much more interesting at work. Still, he felt sort of guilty just standing there and watching her without her knowledge, so he felt the need to alert her. He cleared his throat.

"Oh, my!" she gasped in surprise as she stopped, the mop falling to the floor with a clatter. She smiled sheepishly as an embarrassed blush crept along her cheeks. "M-Mr. Baileywick!" She quickly and hastily tied her hair back into its bun and pinned the cap into her hair before tying her apron around her waist again. "I-I'm sorry you've had to find me here, sir… I know I should be working with the others and helping them to make the castle all spick and span again."

"It's all right, Violet," he assured her as he approached her with his typical calm demeanor. "But if you don't mind my asking… Why were you dancing with a mop?"

She blushed even darker, if it was possible. She giggled nervously. "I, um… Well, Princess Amber informed me that her father was planning to do another one of those Villager Balls within the next few months, and I wanted to be prepared. I've not had much time to practice dancing here recently, so I figured I could do so at nighttime when no one would…see me." She grinned shyly as her mentor gave her a knowing smile. "Granted, a mop is a pretty lousy partner. So stiff."

Baileywick actually laughed at her joke, filling her with pride. It wasn't often the man found anything funny, though she supposed it was just his serious nature. "Indeed." He glanced at his pocket watch and looked back at the door. "Hmm. 10:53. Seven minutes until the shift should end, and I've got a pretty good team assembled…"

"Mr. Baileywick?" the young woman asked, curious as to his rambling.

He gave his friend another smile. "I'm going to let my team handle ending the shift for the night."

" _You_?" she asked in shock. "Why? You always want to see to things and make sure things are in tip-top shape."

"Naturally, and as someone who's had a hand in 98% of the order of the castle, I'm rather certain by now that the routine has been established and things work as well as they're going to." He held out his hand to her, surprising her yet again. "And therefore, I now have time to replace that mop of yours and give you a proper dance experience at least this one time."

Violet smiled brightly as she accepted his hand. "Or we could make it a nightly routine?"

He chuckled. "Don't push it." He gently rested his right hand against her back and lifted her right hand with his left as her other hand clasped his shoulder. "Off we go?"

She laughed. "We don't even have any music, Mr. Baileywick."

"That didn't stop you and the mop," he joked, making her laugh harder as they began twirling around the dancefloor. "I _could_ sing."

"Oh, please don't. I admire you, sir, but if I'm being quite honest—singing isn't your strong suit."

"It's an enchanted land! _Everyone_ can sing!"

"You aren't 'everyone,' I'm afraid." She snickered as he rolled his eyes and spun her outward before hauling her back to him, their dance picking up. "All we have to do is manage to find a rhythm and stay in time with each other."

He smiled as he twirled her once. "I think we manage that well enough on a daily basis. There are few others I'd trust to lead in my stead one day."

Violet seemed rather flattered at the statement. "D-Do you mean that, sir?"

"Of course I do. I believe in you, Violet. And _in time_ …" He gently squeezed her right hand with his left as she blinked at him. "…You'll see that I'm right."

She just smiled. What else could she do? Baileywick— _the_ Baileywick—believed in her. He trusted her. He relied on her. What more could she ask for?

And with that thought in mind, they danced until the moon was high in the night sky.

The end


End file.
